Leftwich’s Gun Crew’s Rebuttal

9012009

The letter to the Richmond Enquirerwritten by members of Leftwich’s gun from Latham’s Battery, contesting the report of Captain John D. Imboden, was provided courtesy of Jim Burgess at Manassas National Battlefield Park. It generated some good comments – check them out at the bottom of the post. Notice that the gun crew claimed that Wheat’s Battalion alone faced off against 35,000 Federal troops. This is not all that unusual for after action reports, regardless of th army, the period of the war, or the rank of the writer. You defeat insurmountable odds, or retreat in an orderly fashion under the weight of same.

For instance, Joe Johnston’s reportsays 6,000 Confederates held off 35,000 Yankees at Bull Run. Other reports make similar assertions. And the myth that the Confederates were significantly out manned at Bull Run persists, showing up as recently as Joseph Glatthaar’s General Lee’s Army (see hereand here). And a new Lost Cause publication states that the Rebels faced the largest army ever assembled on the North American continent up to that time: true, but the book fails to mention that they did so with a force that came in a very, very close second. I’ll be reviewing that book in the next installment of America’s Civil War’s Six-Picks.

So keep in mind that the two armies probably totaled about 33,000 to 36,000 men each. We typically don’t include Runyon’s reserve division, or Johnston’s troops who failed to arrive in time, or any nearby Confederate militia units (thanks, Robert). And the fighting on Matthew’s and Henry House Hills involved only about 15,000 to 18,000 men on each side. These were evenly matched forces.

Information

One response

Not for the sake of argument, but, you say… “This is not all that unusual for after action reports, regardless of the army, the period of the war, or the rank of the writer.”

Granted, estimations of enemy numbers were poor throughout the war. However, I believe that folks like Leftwich may have been able to better assess numbers they faced as the war progressed. I think it’s simply a reflection of the green soldier becoming the veteran. It might be pretty neat to go back in the regimentals (especially those published for the HE Howard series) and assess the reports of commanders at various levels, and as the war progressed, to see how their ability to judge enemy numbers changed.

It would take some legwork, but I think this type of thing would be an interesting thesis for someone to develop.

Dulce bellum inexpertis

“I am sending you these little incidents as I hear them well authenticated. They form, to the friends of the parties, part of the history of the glorious 21st. More anon.”

About

Hello! I’m Harry Smeltzer and welcome to Bull Runnings, where you'll find my digital history project on the First Battle of Bull Run which is organized under the Bull Run Resources section. I'll also post my thoughts on the processes behind the project and commentary on the campaign, but pretty much all things Civil War are fair game. You'll only find musings on my “real job” or my personal life when they relate to this project. My mother always told me "never discuss politics or religion in mixed company”, and that's sound advice where current events are concerned.

The Project

This site is more than a blog. Bull Runnings also hosts digitized material pertaining to First Bull Run. In the Bull Run Resources link in the masthead and also listed below are links to Orders of Battle, After Action Reports, Official Correspondence, Biographical Sketches, Diaries, Letters, Memoirs, Newspaper Accounts and much, much more. Take some time to surf through the material. This is a work in process with no end in sight, so check back often!